Return to Play guidance update - 17 May

England Lacrosse are pleased to announce the latest Return to Lacrosse Roadmap as restrictions continue to ease across the country.

As part of the Return to Play Roadmap, as of Monday 17 May, outdoor and indoor lacrosse are permitted under new England Lacrosse Phase 5 Return to Play guidelines. There are also some restrictions within the guidelines which we can now remove.

• Spectators are permitted - Please follow the social gathering guidelines - Sport England FAQs

• Changing rooms can open - Please follow social distancing guidelines

• The Draw and Face–off can be re-introduced

• Car sharing and the use of minibuses is permitted

With the reintroduction of the draw and face-off procedure, new officiating guidance has been issued in relation to handling the ball. This can be found in the Officiating Infographic and under Game Ball Protocol in the Phase 5 Guidance document.

Phase 5 Return to Play does not mean a return to lacrosse ‘as normal’, and as highlighted in the summary infographic below, there are still a number of protocols in place to ensure a safe return to lacrosse. The guidelines will be reviewed at regular intervals in line with the national Government roadmap.

The full Phase 5 Return to Play guidance document is attached below and all organisations intending to Return to Play should make sure they have read the document and are fully prepared before undertaking any organised lacrosse activity.

England Lacrosse will also be holding a whole game Return to Play webinar on Wednesday 19 May at 6pm. Please complete the webinar sign up form below.

If you have any questions regarding Return to Play that you would like to be addressed on the webinar, please include with your submission, or alternatively, email covid@englandlacrosse.co.uk

It's time to let fly! The Fly launches

Show up Speed up Step up - Can you keep up? Welcome to the Fly

We are extremely excited to announce the launch of The Fly as the identity for our new National 6 a-side event showcasing lacrosse at the highest level.

The Fly, utilising the new fast and innovative 6s format, will be a pioneering elite level competition featuring the new Olympic-proposed version of the sport.

The Fly emphasises the speed of our sport, putting its unique qualities at the heart of the identity and in particular, epitomising the non-stop, high tempo nature of the 6s game.

Not only does the The Fly represent the fast-paced feel of lacrosse, the name and bold symbol represents its aspirational nature in looking forward to the future, looking ahead to Olympic aspirations for the sport, and looking at what can be possible when the sport is able to let Fly.

The striking orange colour of The Fly takes inspiration from the colour of our lacrosse goals; symbolising the feeling of our players and coaches all focused towards one common goal in achieving success.

The Fly will have the needs and ambitions of its players at its core, allowing our elite athletes to pursue the sport at the highest level while also offering a vision for our youngest players to fulfil their dreams.

GB Lacrosse will take to the field for the first time in a World 6s Championship at the 2022 World Games and The Fly will provide the platform and profile for our top talent to express themselves playing the proposed Olympic format.

The Fly features side-by-side men’s and women’s competitions, giving our athletes absolute equality in profile and performance, bringing together the best players and coaches from across the sport.

The Fly has already engaged with the UK’s top players and coaches through an extensive application and recruitment process, and we can’t wait to share with you all the talent on show this summer.

The best way to keep up with The Fly is across The Fly’s social media channels for first look updates.

England Lacrosse’s Playground to Podium strategy had previously set out plans for a national event to give our athletes a high-profile, high-performance environment, while creating a unique, identifiable flagship brand for the sport to engage with a growing lacrosse market.

Following consultation with key stakeholders and the formation of an event working group with representation from across the sections of the game, The Fly has been developed to meet the objectives of the strategy and signals a significant step forward in helping the sport move to the next level and meet our aspirational goals.

Former England Player & Team Manager, Don Bennett, Dies aged 90

Don (front row, third from the left) with the 1986 England men’s training squad which travelled to the World Championships in Toronto, Canada.

England Lacrosse are deeply saddened to hear of the death of former England men’s player and Team Manager as well as long-time supporter of lacrosse, Don Bennett, at the age of 90.

Affectionately known as ‘Dandy’ Don on account of him always being very smartly dressed, Don first played for England in the 1950s and 1960s and eventually became Team Manager in the aftermath of the 1982 World Lacrosse Championships in Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

During his tenure, Don managed the England men’s squad that took part in the international lacrosse tournament which ran alongside the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 1984 as well as the squads that competed in the 1986 and 1990 World Championships in Toronto, Canada, and Perth, Australia, respectively.

Away from lacrosse, Don was a successful businessman, becoming Managing Director and owner of Hills Biscuits that, perhaps unsurprisingly, made biscuits, and, during his stint as England men’s Team Manager, allowed the English Lacrosse Union as it once was (which looked after men's lacrosse in England) to use office and equipment storage space at the factory premises of the biscuit company in Ashton-under-Lyne, Manchester.

In 2011, and after 30 years at the helm, Don stepped down as Chairman of Hills Biscuits and the company remained in the Bennett family, under the watchful eyes of Don’s sons, Rob and Paul, until 2017.

Don’s local club was Poynton Lacrosse Club where both his sons played; Rob was an accomplished player who was forced to retire early from the game due to injury, while Paul played for many years as a defender.

Current National Team Director of the England Women’s National Squad and Great Britain 6-a-side Head Coach, Phil Collier, was fortunate enough to play for England while Don was Team Manager and eventually became Assistant Coach during his tenure in 1990, working under Mike Roberts as Head Coach, and he can’t speak highly enough of Don.

“I’m really sorry to hear the news of Don Bennett’s death; he was a good guy and the best England Manager I had the pleasure of playing under.

“He had a lovely calm manner of dealing with people and situations, always staying positive and trying to see the best way forwards.

“My memories of playing for and working with Don are very special and ones that I will always treasure and I am very grateful to him for his wise council, support and advice during those years.”

The thoughts of England Lacrosse are with Don’s family at this sad time.

Article image includes: (Back row) Martin Clark, Danny Roden, Shawn Moran, Pete Collins, Shawn Ring, Geoff Monkley, Marcus Sandy, John Baron, Peter Condron, Phil Collier. (Middle row) Brian Costello (Coach), Rick Summers, Jack Simpson, Malcom Gosney, Greg Story, Paul Skarratt, Andy Hiller, Keith Gosney, Simon Tarpey, John Bardsley (Head Coach). (Front row) Joe Gold, Pat Moore, Don Bennett (Team Manager), Paul Everard, James Lord, Mark Coups, Terry Underwood, Dave Elwood, Graham Lester (Referee)

North Team Win Final Game in North v South Box Lacrosse Series

The North team overcame their South team counterparts 16-11 in the third and final match of the inaugural North v South box lacrosse series on Sunday, which saw the South team win the series 2-1.

After the two previous games in the series had seen the South team take an unassailable 2-0 lead, this was a free hit for the North team to show the box lacrosse world what they’re really capable of.

And they seemed determined to do just that right from the word go as they managed to contain a very good South team side and finished the first quarter down by a goal with the scores at 3-2 to the South team.

This determination shone through in a low-scoring second quarter that saw the North team go in at half-time level at 5-5.

It was all to play for in this final match of the series, played once again on an outdoor pitch at Disley Amalgamated Sports Club, and there was really nothing between the sides until mid-way through the third quarter when the North team pulled two goals ahead (9-7) for the first time setting up an intriguing final quarter.

The South team weren’t giving up their unbeaten record in the series without a fight though and were able to pull a goal back early in the quarter and they remained hot on the North team’s heels until about five minutes from time.

It was at this point that the North team really turned on the style, defending some South team attacks really well before peeling away on a couple of occasions to eventually see the game out 16-11.

You can watch the game in full on the England Box Lacrosse YouTube channel HERE.

In addition to the final North v South game as part of the North v South box lacrosse series (as was also the case before the previous game), a North v South development game took place as a pre-cursor to the main event.

The South development team managed to win their game yet again, coming out 13-9 winners.

You can watch that game in full on the England Box Lacrosse YouTube channel HERE.

And you can read our report from the first game in the series HERE and from the second game HERE.

If you want to learn more about box lacrosse, follow @englandboxlax, @southernboxlax, and @northernboxlax over on Instagram.

South Team 1

Goal-keeper

Eliot Pugh
Ben Stowe

Defence

Ben Stothard
Corey Jamieson
Peter Shepherd
Tom Roche
Harry Perry
Albert Whitehead
Charlie Albuery

Transition

Tom Bracegirdle
Rob Harris
Joe Tomenga

Attack

Ben Buchanan
Rob Holmes
Will Walker
Jamie Powell
Austin Holgate

North Team 1

Goal-keeper

Elliott Hurry

Defence

Matthew Tatton
Will Allsop
Jamie Sutton
Oli Rogerson
Tomos Rosser

Transition

Elliot Leonard
Ben Page-Laycock
Josh Simpson-Pink
Luke Mills

Attack

Dan Watson
Ollie Allsop
Danny Eckersall
Matt Marsh
Dave Groves

South Team (Development)

Goal-keeper

McGregor Dallas
Tipple

Defence

Fernando
Phillips
Ellis
Kearney
Grkinić
Larraz Ramirez

Transition

Garvey
Payne

Attack

Stanford
Arthur
Ingham Clark
Donaldson
Milner

North Team (Development)

Goal-keeper

Isaac Tweedale

Defence

Sam Cooper
Danny Eddows
Tom Hallam
Dave Best
Robert Edwards

Transition

Brandon Challinor
Aria Dahesh
Ming Trinh

Attack

Drew Bickerton
Sam Griffis
George Dury
Adam Hall

Registration Opens for Annual Bath Eights Tournament

Bath Lacrosse Club have opened the registration for the 2021 edition of their annual Bath Eights tournament, taking place on 4 September this year.

After last year’s event was cancelled due to the on-going coronavirus pandemic, the organisers are excited to open registration for this year’s competition and are confident, given the Government’s roadmap to ease restrictions, that the tournament will be able to go ahead in September.

The Bath Eights tournament is the traditional lacrosse season opener and dates back to 1986 when Low Profilers (Sheffield) won the men’s competition.

A women’s six-as-side version of the tournament is now into its fourth year having been won in previous years by Stockport, Bristol Bombers, and Bath University.

Hillcroft Lacrosse Club are the reigning men’s champions and all funds raised from the event go towards the club development fund at Bath Lacrosse Club, which continues to help grow the sport in the local area. 

Each year, the event goes from strength to strength and this year’s competition is sure to be a fantastic occasion after not being able to play much lacrosse for the past year.

Under the current Government and England Lacrosse guidance, the Bath Eights tournament would not be able to take place; however, Bath Lacrosse Club are hopeful, given the Government’s roadmap to ease restrictions, that the tournament will be allowed to go ahead come September.

With this in mind, Bath Lacrosse Club will be following any and all coronavirus restrictions that may be in place at the time of the event and you can read more about the current restrictions HERE.

For more details on how to register for the 2021 Bath Eights, click HERE.

Residential Triple Arrow Camps are Back for Summer 2021!

England Lacrosse are pleased to announce that the Summer 2021 Triple Arrow Camps schedule will include some residential spaces!

After the success of our Easter Triple Arrow Camps back in April, we are delighted to announce five camps as part of our Summer offering, four of which will have some residential spaces available.

Triple Arrow Camps at Caterham School, Surrey (27-30 July), Charterhouse School, Godalming (3-6 August), St Swithun’s School, Winchester (9-12 August), and Queen Anne’s School, Caversham (17-20 August) will have a number of residential spaces on offer.

The fifth Camp at Oxton Lacrosse Club (27 & 28 July) will be a two-day camp with no residential spaces.

This is exciting news given that it has been two years since any of our campers could stay on-site during a Triple Arrow Camp due to the coronavirus pandemic which forced the cancellation of the 2020 Triple Arrow Camps schedule.

Camps are available to book now and range in prices from £130 for two-day clinic campers to £450 for four-day residential campers.

This year’s Summer Triple Arrow Camps are as follows:

Caterham School, Surrey
Tuesday 27th - Friday 30th July 2021

Oxton Lacrosse Club
Tuesday 27th and Wednesday 28th July 2021

Charterhouse School, Godalming
Tuesday 3rd - Friday 6th August 2021

St Swithun’s School, Winchester
Monday 9th - Thursday 12th August 2021

Queen Anne’s School, Caversham
Tuesday 17th - Friday 20th August 2021

School Challenge Cup 2021 Teams Announced

England Lacrosse are delighted to announce the names of the schools who are set to take part in the School Challenge Cup 2021 in Aldershot on Sunday 14 November.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we were unable to host the 2020 edition of the competition and we are very excited to be able to welcome schools back this year.

In previous years, schools would usually qualify by finishing within the top eight of the U19A age category at the annual National Schools Championships.

However, as the 2021 Championships were also unable to take place, the School Challenge Cup 2021 teams have been identified by online Macoocoo results from the previous four years of National Schools Championships.

From these results, points were assigned to each school depending on where they finished in each tournament.

Based on this points-based system, we’re excited to announce that the following eight schools have qualified for this year’s School Challenge Cup:

• Berkhamsted Girls’ School

• Benenden School

• Guildford High School

• Caterham School

• Lady Eleanor Holles School

• Downe House School

• St Catherine's School

• St Mary’s Calne

The following four schools will be placed on a reserve list if any of the top eight schools are unable to compete:

• Bedford Girls’ School

• Wycombe Abbey

• Moreton Hall

• St Swithun’s School

The reigning champions of the School Challenge Cup are Guildford High School who saw off inaugural winners of the competition, Berkhamsted Girls’ School, 10-5 in the highly competitive 2019 final.

'Bouncing Off the Walls' Fundraising Campaign Raises Almost £9,000!

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce that the lacrosse community has raised almost £9,000 for The Raspberry Pi Foundation as part of our ‘Bouncing Off the Walls’ fundraising campaign.

Over the Easter period, we brought an end to almost three months of fundraising to help buy computer kits for vulnerable young people who have struggled, and continue to struggle, to complete school work at home due to a lack of computer equipment.

We’re delighted to reveal that the final total raised was a massive £8,700.32, meaning that a total of 43 computer kits will soon be making their way to young people who desperately need them.

An estimated 9% of families in the UK do not have access to a laptop, desktop, or tablet at home, according to data published by the Children’s Commissioner in August 2020 and the ‘Bouncing Off the Walls’ campaign has helped The Raspberry Pi Foundation to make a real difference to people’s lives.

For every £200 raised by the ‘Bouncing Off the Walls’ campaign, The Raspberry Pi Foundation are able to provide a vulnerable young person with everything they need to learn from home, including:

• A Raspberry Pi desktop computer;

• A monitor;

• A webcam;

• Educational software;

• Ongoing support from a youth worker and the Raspberry Pi Foundation team.

The fundraising campaign was all part of The Raspberry Pi Foundation’s existing ‘Learn at Home’ campaign which began in March 2020 in response to the first national lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic and has so far raised an incredible £900,000 with 5,000 computer kits being sent to homes all over the country who really need them.

England Lacrosse would like to say a huge thank-you to everyone who took part in, and donated to, the ‘Bouncing Off the Walls’ campaign and for helping to make a difference to people’s lives during this difficult time.

England Lacrosse Joins Bank Holiday Weekend Social Media Boycott

England Lacrosse has made the decision to stand with our friends in football and other sporting communities across the country by boycotting social media from 3pm today (Friday 30 April) until 11:59pm on Monday (3 May).

Social media has considerable reach in society today, power to connect and inform and we understand that it is at the heart of a lot of what we do at England Lacrosse.

However, we believe the boycott will highlight the need for social media companies to do more to eradicate online hate, while also helping to highlight the importance of educating people in the fight against all forms of discrimination.

We understand that the social media boycott in isolation will not eradicate online hate, but it shows that the lacrosse community alongside many other sports is willing to take proactive steps in this continued fight.

First Full Triple Arrow Camps & Talent Pathway Schedule Since 2019 Goes Ahead without a Hitch!

Earlier this month, during the school Easter holidays, a full Triple Arrow Camps and Talent Pathway schedule went ahead for the first time since 2019.

Six two-day Triple Arrow Camps were able to run at venues around the country while several Talent Pathway sessions covering the regional and national pathways took place.

As per the Government and England Lacrosse advice, each session went ahead with stringent coronavirus restrictions in place, meaning equipment such as sticks and balls were sanitised regularly and attendees wore masks and remained social distanced while registering on the day.

Across the two week Easter holiday period, over 1,000 young people joined us on either our Triple Arrow Camps or our Talent Pathway sessions and, after a year away, we are so pleased that there is still such an appetite to play lacrosse!

Check out some of the images from the sessions below.

Registration for Annual BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships Now Open

British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) has today announced that registration for this year’s BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships is now open.

The annual competition, which was cancelled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, is usually made up of teams of eight players but changes this year will see the new 6s format of the game played instead.

As was announced before the cancellation of last year’s competition, the Championships will take place at Coombe Dingle Sports Complex, Bristol, as it has been each year since 2017.

The registration period begins today (Tuesday 27 April) and will end on Thursday 13 May at 11:59pm.

To ensure everyone involved in the tournament is as safe as possible, all current Government and England Lacrosse COVID-19 restrictions will be adhered to.

2019’s tournament was won by Durham University (Men) and University of Oxford (Women) in the Championship Division and Swansea University (Men) and Cardiff University (Women) in the Trophy Division.

The Championships is an important part of the lacrosse calendar and gives university teams an additional opportunity for competition against teams from outside of their league and region with entries from all across the UK.

For more information about the competition and the registration process, click below:

South Team Win Inaugural North v South Box Lacrosse Series

The South box lacrosse team defeated their rivals from the North for a second time last weekend to win the inaugural North v South box lacrosse series.

In this second game in the North v South series, played on an outdoor pitch at Disley Amalgamated Sports Club, the South eventually ran out 13-12 victors after a tense penalty shootout.

The North team looked to be struggling early on in the game and found themselves 7-4 down at half-time but a fantastic effort in the third and fourth quarters saw the North get back on level terms at 12-12 just before the final whistle blew.

In the penalty shootout, which was in a best of three format, the South team managed to squeeze their second penalty past the North goal-keeper without reply meaning they won the second game and took the series.

The first North v South game took place all the way back in March 2020 just before the first national lockdown.

In that game, at the Midland Roller Arena in Lutterworth, the South won 8-5 thanks to some world-class saves from England box lacrosse international goal-keeper, Eliot Pugh.

In addition to the North v South game as part of the North v South box lacrosse series, a North v South development game also took place as a pre-cursor to the main event.

The South development team managed to win their game too, coming out 10-6 winners.

Both games are now available to watch in full on the England Box Lacrosse YouTube channel.

If you want to learn more about box lacrosse, follow @englandboxlax, @southernboxlax, and @northernboxlax over on Instagram.

North Team

• Isaac Tweedale

• Matt Tatton

• Will Allsop

• Jamie Sutton

• Andy Ellison

• Oli Rogerson

• Chris Wainer

• Eliot Leonard

• Cai Jefferies

• Ollie Allsop

• Dave Groves

• Matt Marsh (C)

• Josh Turner

• Ryan Hunns

• Dan Watson

• Elliot Bickerton

• Danny Eckersall

• Luke Mills

South Team

• Eliot Pugh

• Ben Stowe

• Chris Hockey

• Peter Shepherd

• Albert Whitehead

• Corey Jamieson

• Tom Roche (C)

• Taylor Harrison

• Austin Holgate

• Tom Bracegirdle

• Ben Buchanan

• Rob Holmes

• Jamie Powell

• Pete Wilson

• Sam Perry

• Rob Harris

• Chase Lansing

• Will Walker

England Lacrosse Announce Dates of National Schools Championships 2022

England Lacrosse are excited to announce the dates for this year’s School Challenge Cup competition and next year’s National Schools Championships.

After both events were cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, we can now reveal that the 2021 edition of the School Challenge Cup will take place on Sunday 14 November 2021 with the National Schools Championships 2022 taking place from 19 to 22 March 2022.

Both competitions will take place in their usual home of Aldershot Garrison.

The exciting news comes after the Government laid out their plan for the easing of coronavirus restrictions and after lacrosse successfully returned to play last month.

Both competitions will follow any and all restrictions that may continue to be in place at the time of the events.

Further details regarding both tournaments will be released in due course.

Youth Sport Trust Launches New Active Recovery Hub

The Youth Sport Trust have launched a new Active Recovery Hub to provide schools, local authorities and families with easy access to free resources to get children moving before, during and after the school day.

The news comes after England Lacrosse was involved in the recent sector campaign to deliver an active recovery on the reopening of schools to prioritise the health and wellbeing of children in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The launch of the new hub, led by Youth Sport Trust and Sport England with the support of funding from the National Lottery, also follows a commitment in the Government’s School Sport and Activity Action Plan to extend the School Games website to help teachers and parents find opportunities for young people to compete and get active.

It is also part of an ambitious Government investment of £1.7 billion to boost learning and recovery for children and young people following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new hub, to which England Lacrosse has contributed content, will sit on the popular School Games website and provide the ideal platform to get all young people more active.

More than 18,800 schools already take part in the School Games nationwide and a total of 38 sports organisations have provided content and expertise to create a diverse range of activities that are inclusive.

The hub has hundreds of resources available on it to help all children achieve the Chief Medical Officer’s recommendation of an average of 60 active minutes a day.

Examples of what it includes are:

• A Tokyo Ten virtual active breaktime, 10 minutes of activity to get moving by Travel to Tokyo

• Mini-games resources, designed by charity Sense to help disabled people to be more active

• A virtual 30-minute YST After School Sport Club. With hosts including England footballer Rachel Yankey and England netballer Sasha Corbin

• Move Crew, designed by ukactive Kids and Nike to help young people unlock their 60 minutes of daily recommended activity with activity missions

• Introductory package to orienteering activities

Mike Diaper, Executive Director for Children and Young People, said:

“Helping children and young people have a positive experience of being active is vital so that they can build healthy habits that last a lifetime. After a year of such disruption, this free and easy-to-use resource will help schools, local authorities and families give young people variety and a greater chance to find something they enjoy, so they can get moving throughout the day.

“We simply couldn’t offer these important resources without the support of the players of The National Lottery and the funding they generate. The Hub is an excellent example of the sport and activity sector collaborating to provide fun, enjoyable and inclusive activities for children and young people to do.”

Ali Oliver, Chief Executive of the Youth Sport Trust, said:

“The Active Recovery Hub will make it easy for schools to access age-appropriate content so children can be helped to be active, recover their wellbeing and re-engage in school.

“Teachers have told us they recognise the importance of physical activity and the outdoors in children’s recovery, but they have so much on their plate at the moment, we want to make it simple for them. The hub will support schools to find easy to use and engaging content all in one place, removing some of the barriers currently faced.

“With National School Sport Week just around the corner in June, the Active Recovery Hub and joined up approach from the school sport and physical activity sector will be vital in supporting children to have fun and celebrate the life changing benefits of play and sport.”

The Active Recovery Hub is available HERE.

Schools can begin to register for National School Sport Week HERE.

Emma Oakley expresses delight at return to national squad training

The move to Phase 4 Return to Play guidelines at the start of the month has been welcome news for everyone in the lacrosse community, and none more so than our national squad programmes.

The decimation of international events over the last year has left our national teams short on practice and short on opportunity, but the recent Return to Play has meant squads can now get back on the field and look forward to the future.

And England Women’s World Championship training squad member, Emma Oakley, spoke of her and the group’s excitement after their first squad weekend following the hiatus stretching back to last year.

She said: “It’s been great, everybody is just so buzzed! It’s been three months since we last played, we’ve built up the excitement over the last few weeks and it’s been so nice to just release it on the pitch.

“We’ve done quite a lot of skill drills, just shaking off a bit of the rust and then into a lot of game play just to get ourselves back into it.”

The April training weekend was a joint affair, with the World Championship training squad working side by side with the Under 23s, seeing over 50 players back on the pitch across the weekend.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, any previous squad weekend permitted under Return to Play guidelines had still been subject to a 30 participant limit and so had restricted the squad’s ability to practice against other teams, or even get the full World Championship training squad together in the same place.

Oakley said: “It’s always great to play with the whole England setup, it helps to build us, it builds the Under 23s and we were able to play a great practice match yesterday.

“We haven’t played for such a long time, it’s great to just remember what lacrosse actually is and how much we enjoy it.”

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A post shared by Emma Oakley (@emmaoakleyy)

The defender admits that it’s been a difficult few months, but praised the relentless motivation of the staff and her fellow team mates for helping everyone get through the lockdown period.

“It’s been tough, we would much rather have been out playing but I think the coaches and the players have done a great job in working on what we can do.

“We’ve had our programmes, all our strength work, speed work, conditioning work going on but we’ve also had a number of virtual squads, so we’ve tried to get together as much as we can even though it doesn’t quite replace being on the pitch.”

Another consequence of the global situation has been the wholesale rescheduling of the international lacrosse calendar which has seen the Women’s World Championship pushed back 12 months from its original slot of this July.

However, Oakley is looking to turn the delayed Championship into a positive, using the extra lead in time to continue to develop her game and make sure preparations are perfect for 2022.

“Now having 15 months to go, we’ve got 15 months of focus, and we’ve got that extra bit of time just to make sure we’re on our game, know what we’re doing and we’re now just incredibly excited for the next year ahead!’